But I Hate You
by Star of CCTV
Summary: When Izzie bumps into an old flame everything changes! Please review!
1. The One That Got Away

_Hi, in the middle of really big scary exams so I just wrote this quickly because studying sucks! Please let me know what you think???_

_Disclaimer: I dont own anything  
_

Izzie Stevens hated weddings. And now she was attending the wedding of her best friend from Med school. Ok hate was a strong word. She loved seeing Karen walking down the aisle in a beautiful gown, and she was happy for her. Karen was marrying Joe King who was a great guy and a great surgeon. Karen and Joe were the couple everyone was jealous off. They had a perfect life. Both high profile doctors working in one of the best hospitals with an amazing house and now the perfect wedding.

What Izzie hated about wedding was that they reminded her off all her missed opportunities. Here she was attending her friend's wedding and she was still single, so single that she could not even think of anyone to bring with her as a date. And she could hardly ask any of her friends in New York to make the journey to Seattle with her. She had moved to New York just over two years ago, needing to leave Seattle and all its memories behind her.

And it was those memories that she was thinking about today at her friend's wedding. Izzie sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. She was wearing a beautiful champagne coloured dress that clung to her toned body nicely. Attempting to fix her hair that was not behaving she thought about what her wedding day would have been like. Of course that made her think of Denny. It was always at weddings that she thought about what could have been, but Izzie was realistic and Denny was dead, so Izzie moved on and George was the next man she loved. Izzie smile as she imagined what it would have been like to marry George, her best friend in the whole world. It would have worked and they would have stayed together and lasted but they would have been living a lie. Izzie still loved George and he still loved her, but it wasn't the type of love she had for Denny. It was a really strong unbreakable friendship kind of love.

And their friendship was unbreakable. Despite leaving Seattle behind Izzie and George remained the best of friends, talking everyday and taking holidays together every year. George had even visited her in New York a few times but she had never returned to Seattle until now.

Izzie's friendship with Alex and Meredith had also survived the distance. Often they begged her to come back to Seattle but Izzie refused, she had not told any of them that she was returning for an old friends wedding and had planned to surprise them tomorrow by visiting. Izzie was so happy she did not lose contact with them.

Alex, there was another guy she could have married. And Peter, a guy she dated in New York for six months. But there was one man that she always thought about at weddings. The one that got away. He was the reason that Izzie hated weddings. Their relationship even started at a wedding. So weddings led to thinking about him, which led to thinking about her regrets, which led to thinking about how she ended up leaving Seattle, which brought back all the pain from their break up. Thinking about this hurt as much as thinking about Denny. Denny who was dead, there was nothing Izzie could have done to save him. Even as a doctor she was powerless. But this relationship could have been saved, maybe they would be still together now, be married by now and have children. They had both wanted children so much and Izzie had daydreamed about what they would look like and what kind of a father he would have made. He would have been a great father, and a great husband.

Applying a coat of lip gloss Izzie took one last look at herself in the mirror. The dinner would be served soon so Izzie pulled herself away from her thoughts and went to look for Kelly, Dan and Adam, her friends from med school. Izzie did not know anyone else at the wedding apart for these three friends and the bride.

Entering the ballroom where the meal was about to be served Izzie quickly scanned the seating arrangement to find her table. She did not read all the names at the table but if she had Izzie would have left the ballroom and hid in her hotel room for the night. She knew she was sitting with Adam and searched the room for him.

"Iz, over here." She heard a voice behind her and turning around she saw Adam waving at her. As she approached the table her heart nearly stopped when she saw an all too familiar face looking up and catching her eye.

"I got you some wine." Adam said as he pulled out her chair for her.

Izzie was now caught in a staring match with him, the man she had been trying her best not to think about all day. She was staring at a stunned looking Mark Sloan. Realizing that Adam was pushing a glass of wine into her hand Izzie broke the stare.

"Thanks, I think I'm going to need it." Izzie said as she drank a large mouthful of wine.


	2. Reactions Part 1

_Kept this chapter short but more will follow. Please review. And I dont own anything._

Mark Sloan had imagined what would happen if he ever saw Izzie Stevens again. Depending on his mood it would play out in two ways. The first way involved falling back into bed with his Izzie and getting her back but the second always involved him getting one over on his ex. Bumping into her at a conference after he had published a highly successful journal surrounded by a whirlwind of press and leaving Izzie realizing what she was missing out on. But in real life she was not missing out on much. Mark was in the same place he was five years ago only now Izzie was not even living in the same city.

And now she was standing in front of him looking like she had just stepped off a catwalk. All different emotions flooded him. He hated her but at the same time he still loved her. He had never stopped loving her but she had left, she had taken the first step and moved on. He knew she had gone to New York and was now working as one of the top plastic surgeons on the east coast. She often appeared in magazines at social events looking a million dollars every time.

When Mark and Izzie dated he became friends with Alex, George and Cristina. He especially became close with Alex and knew that he was still good friends with Izzie. In the months that followed Izzie leaving Mark often referred to her as "that Bitch" which earned him many slaps from his co-workers. Learning not to talk about Izzie, Mark rarely mentioned her but at times Derek filled him in on any gossip he had heard from Meredith. He never asked for information but Derek knowing how much Mark missed her provided it anyway.

How Mark was tongue tied. She looked beautiful, so beautiful and happy. He wondered how happy she was without him. Did she think about him? Did she regret leaving Seattle or him for that matter? Mark realized that all the scenarios he imagined bumping into Izzie Stevens at his friend's wedding was now one of them.

Beside him an annoying young woman squealed in delight.

"Oh my god, Isobel Stevens, is that you? You look amazing? I swear you get younger every time I see you!" Izzie blushed, she always blushed. Anytime she received praise for her looks she hated it, she was a serious doctor. Mark knew how much she hated the attention and from nowhere this slipped out.

"Really, I think you've aged Stevens." Izzie grinned at Mark while the annoying woman beside him quickly jumped in.

"Gosh do you know Dr. Sloan, Isobel?" All eyes at the table were darting between Izzie and Mark.

"Yes, I was fortunate enough to work with Dr. Sloan at Seattle Grace, but that was years ago." Izzie waved her hand and Marks heart fell, she had dismissed talking about him, then again he did not want their dirty laundry to be aired out on the dinner table. The first course arrived and Mark decided to turn his attention away from Izzie Stevens which was harder now as she was so close. He did not want to fight with her; he knew how much more she could hurt him and how much his words could hurt her. Maybe they would talk later. Or maybe they would kill each other later. He'd have to wait and see.


	3. Reactions Part 2

_Disclaimer- I do not own anything!_

_Its been awhile since I got a chance to write anything, please review!!  
_

Izzie's heart was racing. She picked at the food on her plate, her appetite long gone. Her mind raced wondering why Mark was at her friend's wedding. She could not remember him ever mentioning the bride or groom's name. What was he doing here?

While Izzie's mind was in turmoil her appearance was calm. She tried her best to focus on the conversation around her but often caught herself glancing across the table at her ex-boyfriend. He too appeared to have lost his appetite and was pushing food around his plate while the loud woman beside him chatted animatedly at him. Izzie knew he was not listening; clearly he was as shaken as she was.

Once or twice she caught him looking at her but his expression was unreadable. Izzie felt like time had slowed down; she just wanted to get the meal over with, but then what? Would they ignore each other? Or would they talk? And if they did would they be civil, friendly or cruel? She hoped they wouldn't fight like they used to. Both of them were guilty of causing the other unnecessary pain by saying horrible things. Izzie cringed as she remembered some of their fights, the sting of his words still hurt her but she knew she had said some unforgivable things too which now she completely regretted.

Stealing another glance in his direction she realised he was still as sexy and attractive as ever. When they had dated she often could not believe that she had fallen for such an attractive man and that he had fallen for her. She honestly enjoyed the jealous glances women would throw at her when they walked hand in hand. She never felt threatened by these women either. Mark worshipped her and he had left his title of man whore behind him when they started dating.

In the beginning she was sceptical about dating him. All of her friends warned her that he would hurt her, even his best friend Derek took her aside in work and highlighted Marks wrong doings. Izzie did not ignore these warnings, and honestly for the first few months of their relationship she was waiting for the day when he would slip up and cheat. For months she regarded their relationship as nothing more than a fling until he asked his parents to come to Seattle to meet her. Running to Derek for advice she was shocked to discover that she would be the first girlfriend to meet Constance and Michael Sloan. Izzie decided there and then that things were getting out of control; Mark was never intended to be a long term serious boyfriend. Izzie put on her best performance when she met his parents and she was surprised at how welcoming they were and how much she liked them. Soon after they departed she broke up with Mark.

Suddenly Izzie was alone and realised that she actually really cared for Mark, she missed being with him, his smell, his dry sense of humour. Of course Mark acted as if the break up had not affected him, he had known weeks before that he had fallen for Izzie and was mad with himself for moving so fast and introducing her to his parents. The irony was not lost on them as Mark who was a self professed commitment phobe was more committed to their relationship than Izzie who had her wedding planned to the smallest detail since her sixth birthday.

Both Mark and Izzie had been working together on a ground breaking new surgery for correcting cleft palates found their working relationship both strained and awkward until they finally had a break through with their research. Marks work would be published and that night Izzie went to his office with a bottle of champagne to congratulate him. Before they knew it the champagne was gone and they were back in Marks hotel room having the most passionate sex Izzie can ever remember. Thinking about it now at the dinner table made her blush. The next morning in Marks arms Izzie told him that she made a mistake and they decided to give their relationship another go. Two months later Izzie surprised Mark when she suggested that they should go on a holiday together and it was in Hawaii that Mark first told Izzie he loved her, with Izzie returning the feeling they had finally reached parity in their relationship.

* * *

Later after the dinner Izzie was walking across the room when a friendly voice called her name. She turned and smiled as she saw Chief Webber wave at her.

He gave her a warm kiss on the cheek but his face looked concerned.

"Stevens you know Mark is here?" Izzie smiled, the Chief had always been annoyed at the amount of relationships struck up between staff in his hospital but he always cared for his staff when these relationships crumbled. He had begged Izzie to stay when she had handed in her notice and even offered to keep her hours working near Mark to a minimum.

"Yes, Chief he was at my table for dinner, and we both survived." She joked "Your looking well, still presiding over all at Seattle Grace I believe?"

"Yes they can't get rid of me and Isobel call me Richard, I'm not your boss any more, but if you would be willing to come back to Seattle Grace I would be more than happy to have you and I'm sure the board would offer you a very generous salary. I have been keeping up to date with all your great work in New York; I always knew you would become a great surgeon. But you know you could keep up your great work in Seattle?" Izzie smiled at the Chiefs sales pitch.

"Richard that's a great offer but" Izzie began only to be cut off by the Chief.

"Isobel Seattle Grace has changed a lot since you have left, we have the best equipment the best doctors and the best plastics unit, will you be staying in Seattle for long, I would love you to see the hospital now. And of course the Denny Duquette clinic is doing a wonderful job, I don't think I ever said it to you but your investment in that clinic was one of the most self-less things I have ever seen anyone do, it's a credit to you." At the mention of her clinic Izzie's heart started beating faster, George had kept her up to date on all developments there but now she wanted to see it. She never went back for fear of bumping into Mark but now that was over she knew she would not be able to resist.

"Maybe I'll come by tomorrow, I was planning on just calling into Meredith's house but Richard you've convinced me to at least have a look, I won't be accepting any job offers Richard." She said as she moved away.

"Come in anytime tomorrow and I'll reschedule so I can talk to you, and we'll see about that job offer then." Richard said thinking what a great addition to his staff Isobel Stevens would be.


	4. Confrontation

_Hope you like this, please Review!_

As the night wore on Mark had successfully managed to avoid Izzie. He could not decided if he wanted to avoid her or not but he did not want to make the first move and initiate a conversation. His luck was about to run out.

While he was congratulating the groom he noticed Izzie walking by and suddenly Joe called out to her. Mark instantly broke out into a cold sweat. He felt Izzie getting closer and his nervous hitting new heights. As she joined them Joe began introductions.

"Izzie this is Dr. Sloan I've sure you have heard of him, he is Head of Plastics in Seattle Grace. You two will have a lot in common" Joe noted as he looked at Mark, "Izzie is also a plastic surgeon in New York, I'm sure you've heard of her work?"

"Joe, Dr. Sloan was one of my attendings I was an intern in Seattle Grace. How do you two know each other?" Izzie asked finally trying to get to the bottom of Marks presence at her friend's wedding.

"Joe spent some time with us in Seattle Grace lately" Mark answered finally finding his voice.

"It's an excellent hospital, and the staff are great, a lot more friendly than other places I have worked in. It's a pity the other guys could not come today, I think Alex would have really liked the free bar, but that's life, Seattle Grace can't stop just because I'm getting married. Speaking of which, Izzie have you seen my new wife around?"

Izzie smiled Joe was clearly a little drunk and so happy he was one hundred percent unaware of how awkward the situation around him was. "She was over by the chocolate fountain about ten minutes ago Joe."

"Great, I'll leave you two to catch up." Joe said while winking at Mark, who prayed Izzie, did not notice.

They were finally alone.

Both looked at each other not knowing what to say until Izzie decided to break the silence,

"So how are Meredith and Derek? They had another baby recently right?" Izzie knew the answer to these questions she had been talking to Meredith only yesterday.

"They are good, the baby, Lucy, she had a slight cold last week but is better now. Jack has not taken kindly to having a new sister around." At this Izzie felt guilty. Jack was born about a year after Meredith and Derek got married and she and Mark were his godparents. Izzie tried to make up for being the world's worst godmother by sending the young boy expensive presents and talking to him on the phone but this really was not good enough.

"Oh poor Jack, it must be a big change for him. God is he almost five?" Izzie exclaimed glad to have the distraction of trying to mentally work out what age Jack was.

"He was four and a half last week. I took him to the park to celebrate, I think he likes getting away from the baby, he told me that she smells and he hates her." Mark said grinning as he remembered the determined expression on Jacks little face when he told Mark that he was planning on running away if the baby cried one more time. At times Mark found it hard to believe how fond he was of Derek and Meredith's kids. He never thought for a moment that he would be any good at being a godfather. He knew so little about children at the time but now he was much better at being around children, they did not annoy him anymore. In fact he loved looking after Jack and did it as often as he could.

"Wow, four and a half years old, god I can't believe it. I'm planning on visiting them tomorrow; I don't think Jack will remember me though." Izzie said sadly.

"He talks about you Iz and he points you out in pictures so he knows what you look like." Mark said

"Really?" Izzie asked sounding hopeful.

"Yeah and Meredith and Derek will be so happy to see you. And of course you'll get to see Lucy."

"Yeah I am really looking forward to it. I think I'll call into the hospital as well and see some of the others while I'm here."

"Seattle Grace has changed a lot. Hahn is gone and now Cristina is head of Cardio, kicking ass at it too, she's engaged to Dr. Hunt, I dunno if you remember him? Oh and Sidney Herron is gone, thank god. Bailey is working in paediatrics now and I'm sure there's other stuff going on I just can't think of anymore at the moment." Mark suddenly realized he was beginning to relax into the conversation when Izzie began to withdraw.

"Chief Webber was telling me about all the changes. Well, it was nice seeing you again Mark." Izzie said softly with a tight smile.

"You too Iz, you look great." Mark replied kicking himself mentally, complementing her was not going to make her stay and talk to him. With this she smiled and moved away, deciding she had had enough of the wedding she began to walk towards her room.

Hearing Mark telling her about everyone had hurt more than she had imagined it would. They were her friends too but she had left and she was no long a major part of any of their lives. Unlike Mark. Now he was friends with all of them, and it especially hurt when she heard how close to Jack he was. When they had first been asked to be godparents he had complained that he did not want to have to spend time with Derek's brat but now he was taking the kid to the park. Izzie felt jealous, but she knew she only had herself to blame.

As Mark watched her walk across the room he was overcome with anger. There she was walking away from him again; he needed an explanation for why she left in the first place. And he was going to get one tonight. Striding across the room and leaving the reception behind him he caught up with her in the hall.

"You never came back." Mark stated angrily

"What?" Izzie asked, he had startled her when he had first spoke.

"When you left it was only ment to be for a few weeks but you never came back." Izzie just looked at him with a shocked expression on her face. "You never even called to tell me you were staying in New York."

Now Izzie was angry, here he was demanding some kind of explanation off her,

"Why would I call you? Mark we had broken up and you had made it crystal clear that we were over, why the fuck would I call you!" Her eyes had darkened. He could tell that she was furious.

"You said you were coming back." Mark said stubbornly

"Yeah but my plans changed, I got offered a great job in a great hospital where I had no baggage, I would have been a fool not to take it." At this Izzie began walking again and reached the lifts.

"Always taking the easy way out Iz, you have not changed a bit."

"What do you mean by that?" Izzie snapped looking around to see if anyone was listening.

"Walking away from me now, not returning to Seattle then." He explained as if it was the simplest thing in the world. Izzie wanted to scream at him, he really was the most annoying man in the world. As the doors of the elevator opened she turned to him.

"I got a better offer in New York." She replied coldly as she stepped into the elevator, she pressed the button for the tenth floor and turned back to him, only to find him standing right in front of her. Suddenly his lips crashed into hers for the first time in three years. His arms wrapped around her waist as he got to hold her again. She pushed against him and broke the kiss. She searched his face for an explanation but got lost in his eyes. Before she knew it she was kissing him again.

She could figure out in the morning if she had made a mistake but right now she wanted to be reminded of what it was like to be with Mark Sloan again.


	5. Returning

_Taking a short break from writing Distraction to get this up. Review of you want more :)_

_Disclaimer: I dont not own any of Greys. Sadly!_

At 5:42 in the morning Marks pager went off waking him up. The worst part about being a doctor was the bloody pager. It always went off at the worst times; it was almost as if emergencies only happened when the last place Mark wanted to be was in the hospital. And right now really was the worst time ever. Mark shifted in the bed to grab the pager before it woke up Izzie. He had to leave which ruined his plans for the morning. He wanted to get breakfast with Izzie, they needed to talk.

Getting out of the bed and quickly dressing he watched Izzie sleeping. When they had dated he had loved watching her sleep. She looked so peaceful and beautiful. He used to wonder what she was dreaming about but now he would pay millions to know her thoughts on what just happened between them. As he finished buttoning his shirt he leaned back over the bed and kissed her softly on the forehead.

"Iz, I got paged, I gotta go." He said softly as she shifted in the bed. She groaned in response bringing a smile to Marks face. When they were together if he got paged she would complain if he woke her up to tell her that he was going but on mornings when he just left she would give out that he never told her he got paged. "You're coming to the hospital later right?"

"Yeah." She sighed softly. Kissing her again on the forehead Mark gathered up his things and left.

* * *

Izzie was now driving to Meredith's house. When she woke up she was really peaceful. She had gotten an amazing sleep which was just what she needed as she had come to Seattle from France where she had been attending a conference and she was completely jet lagged. She also had had one hell of an amazing night. She vaguely remembered Mark leaving after getting paged which was probably a good thing as waking up with him again after all these years could be extremely awkward. She did not know how or what she should feel about what had happened last night. Realistically no good could come of jumping back into bed with Mark; she would be leaving in four days and what would happen then. But despite all her thoughts that it was a bad idea Izzie did not regret last night one bit and she was grinning like a school girl again when she remembered just how amazing it felt to be with Mark again.

Pulling her car into the drive of the fabulous house Derek had built on his land Izzie smiled. Every place in Seattle held so many memories especially Meredith's house. During the summer the Shepherds held many BBQ's and parties of course with Izzie providing the food. Mark, Izzie, Meredith and Derek were like an inseparable foursome before Izzie left. She often wondered if Mark had any girlfriends over the years that became friends with Meredith and Derek but Meredith had never mentioned anyone.

Knocking on Meredith's front door Izzie waited nervously for her friend to answer. From inside she could hear a baby crying, footsteps running towards the door and Meredith's voice telling Jack not to run inside. Suddenly the door jerked open and standing with a sobbing baby on her hip was a tired looking Meredith Grey.

"Izzie." She squealed in delight causing Jack to look up at his mom in shock. Before Izzie knew it she was being pulled into a tight hug and dragged into the house.

"What on earth are you doing here?" Meredith demanded

"I was in town at a wedding yesterday so I thought I should stop by and say hello to my favourite godchild." Izzie said as she smiled at Jack who had suddenly gone very quiet now that there was a stranger in his house.

"Come into the kitchen and I'll make you coffee. You should have told me you were coming Izzie, I could have cleaned the house up a bit." Meredith said as she led Izzie into the kitchen glancing around embarrassed at how disorganised her house was.

"I wanted to surprise you." Izzie replied as she perched herself on a stool at the island. "So this is Lucy, she beautiful. Can I hold her?"

As Meredith carefully put the baby in Izzie's arms the sight made her realize how much had changed in the past few years. Meredith had expected Mark and Izzie to marry and have children. And Meredith could not wait for that date to come so that she would not be the only one of her friends who was a mother. Motherhood actually really suited Meredith which surprised everyone including herself, but in the first few months after Jacks birth Meredith thought it would be so cool to have a friend like Izzie with children too. Meredith could talk about Jack for twenty four hours straight and she knew her friends found this annoying, except for Izzie. Izzie really wanted children of her own and she looked so natural holding Lucy and chatting to Jack who had begun to show Izzie pictures he painted.

When Mark and Izzie first broke up everyone just thought it was a minor bump in their relationship but as the weeks moved on Meredith got more and more worried. Everyone tried to intervene and get them back together but it did not happen. Meredith had gotten Derek, Alex and the Chief to try and talk some sense into Mark but nothing worked. A few weeks later Izzie went to New York for a bit of what she called retail therapy and she never returned, until now.

"It's so great to see you again Iz."

"You too, I really should have come back sooner to see everyone but you know work got in the way and everything." Izzie said sheepishly.

"Yeah I know, but your here now."

"Yeah I'm going into the hospital later to see everyone, it's going to be so weird going back." Izzie stated as she bounced Lucy on her lap.

"Actually George has a day off today so he won't be in but I was thinking how about I organise dinner for everyone tonight and we can all have a proper catch up?"

"Meredith that would be great but I'm sure you have your hands full with the kids and all."

"Oh no Derek should be home at four so I'll get him to help me out. It would be no problem at all."

"Well it should great but only if your sure."

"Right that's sorted so. Now tell me all about New York?" Meredith smiled at her friend at the same time wondering how the hell she was going to pull off dinner tonight.

* * *

Izzie had just left the Chiefs office after being offered an amazing job back in Seattle Grace. The Chief would have offered Izzie the sun to get her back to Seattle Grace which made Izzie fell very proud. Considering that just a few years ago Dr. Webber had almost ended her career in medicine following Denny's death Izzie felt having the Chief begging her to come back proved how much she had grown and matured since then.

She followed the familiar halls stopping to talk to familiar faces on her way until she reached an office door. Knocking softly she heard a voice telling her to come in.

Opening the door she saw Alex Karev staring back at her from behind his desk.

"Izzie, holy crap, what are you doing here?" he said as he jumped up from his seat and hugged his old house mate.

"Visiting you of course. Why else would I be here?" She said grinning at him. He looked a little older but it suited him, it made him look more distinguished and also sexy.

"Wow Izzie you look amazing. Are you back for good?" he asked hopefully.

"Nope, just a quick visit."

"Oh Izzie come back its so boring here without you. Where are you staying?"

"The Archfield, it's lovely. Do you have time to grab a quick coffee now?" Izzie asked hopefully.

"Yeah sure."

As they walked towards the canteen they chatted excitedly. They turned a corner Izzie saw Mark at the nurses' station. This was the moment she had been both dreading and looking forward to at the same time. She had not told Meredith about her night with Mark as she wanted to get it straight in her head first. It was obvious that Alex had seen Mark too and he nervously asked Izzie if she wanted to take the stairs and avoid Mark.

"No, it's fine let's take the elevator." She replied.

Izzie's heart was beating faster and she was just dying for Mark to notice that she was here. She was grinning like a Cheshire cat but suddenly out of nowhere a slim blonde woman dressed in a business suit walked over to Mark and kissed him on the lips.

Izzie's smile dropped and suddenly Mark looked up and saw Izzie.

"Who's that?" Izzie asked Alex trying to hide the surprise in her voice.

"That's Gloria. Marks girlfriend."


	6. Gloria

_Hey guys, didn't get round to putting in Izzie's reaction to Gloria but I'm working on it. I'll work faster with reviews though. :)_

Meredith was rushing around the supermarket trying to figure out what she would be able to manage to cook for dinner. Her plans for a nice little get together were turning in to a full on disaster. With Lucy and Jack being minded by George for a few hours Meredith at least had some time to think. But the more she thought about how wrong this could go the more she panicked. She wanted everything to be perfect for Izzie and the chances of perfection were growing slimmer and slimmer. She needed to vent her worries and so pulled out her cell and called Cristina.

"Cristina, please god say you are not going into surgery, I need your help."

Meredith received a harsh laugh.

"Knew you would not be able to pull it off Mer, cooking Izzie a welcome home dinner your crazy."

"I know, I know. What am I going to do? I can't even figure out how many people I'm cooking for."

"Well me and Owen we're free. You'll have Tequila right?" Meredith grinned she always had a stash of tequila and Cristina knew this well.

"Yeah George and Lexie, Alex, that's eight including me, Derek and Iz. Next problem I have is do I invite Mark?" this question was met by an amused snort from Cristina.

"Hell yes ask him, it'll make dinner so much fun. Ex lovers sitting across the table from each other, oh maybe they'll have one of those screaming fights just like old times, I've missed them."

"Cristina your really evil." Meredith said frowning as she tried to decide how many carrots to buy.

"I wonder does he know Izzie is back?" Cristina asked, she was delighted with Izzie's return. Yeah it would be great to see Izzie again and all that or whatever but really this was the most exciting thing to happen in Seattle Grace in ages, which just proved how boring things really were.

"I don't know. I guess if he saw her in the hospital today."

"Yeah I saw her for a bit earlier just before surgery, bitch is looking well." Cristina smirked

"Ha yeah. But really, should I ask Mark or not?"

"Well ask him but tell him Izzie will be there and make sure he does not bring Gloria." Cristina ordered. They all hated Gloria, she was nearly a carbon copy of Izzie only with bigger but fake boobs and zero intelligence. No one knew why Mark put up with her. They were always breaking up and getting back together. Gloria was dramatic while Mark had become more withdrawn. Gloria could order him to do anything and he would do it because fighting with her was so exhausting.

"Oh I thought they broke up last week?" Meredith asked

"Don't think so, she was here last week and today."

"Maybe with Izzie back he'll finally dump her for good?"

"Mer, she's only visiting." Cristina pointed out.

"Yeah that's what Izzie thinks. I'm going to make sure she stays." Meredith stated with determination.

"Ha, how you going to do that?"

"I don't know yet, I'll have to figure it out. Right now I have a stupid dinner to plan. How does this sound? Chicken, roast potatoes and carrots?" Meredith enquired

"Sounds great, it will probably taste like crap though."

"Shut up. Right I better go. See you later." With that Meredith hung up knowing well that her friend was probably right about the food.

* * *

Mark had never been so mad at Gloria in his life before. Her timing for arriving in the hospital could not have been more wrong. And on seeing Izzie's face which was a mixture of surprise and anger he immediately knew he had blown it. Izzie had quickly disappeared into the lift with Alex. Trying to keep calm he turned to Gloria.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded

"Saying hello, what is wrong with you Mr. Cranky?" she said picking an invisible hair off his scrubs.

"We broke up, last week. Don't you remember?"

"Oh that, I've decided to forgive you." She simply explained. "Free for lunch?"

"No." He barked as Derek joined them.

"Hey, you guys free tonight? Meredith is organizing a dinner party, apparently she has some surprise." At this Gloria jumped up and down like a child while Mark rolled his eyes.

"Yay I love dinner parties, oh fantastic, and I got a new dress last week, it will be perfect." She squealed.

"Fantastic, come round about 8ish ok?" Derek asked as he moved away.

Mark soon realized that Izzie would probably be there and the last thing he wanted to happen was have Gloria there. He had to do something.

"Gloria I don't think it's a good idea if you come."

"Don't be silly Mark, your friends love me of course I'm going." She replied in her bubbly high pitched voice.

"Lexie doesn't like you, and she is so close to her due date that it would probably be best if you did not come. You might upset her."

"Well I don't like Lexie, or her loser boyfriend for that matter but that wouldn't stop me from enjoying the party, Lexie needs to follow my example. Anyway she's just jealous of me because I am going out with you."

Mark rolled his eyes. According to Gloria everyone was jealous of her for some reason or another.

"But your not going out with me, we have broken up." Mark pointed out again.

"Sure what ever Mark, pick me up at 7:30." She said as she left. Mark groaned. He needed to get that woman out of his life.


	7. Merediths Dinner Party

_Please review, they make me happy._

_Disclaimer: I do not own any Greys characters or stories.  
_

Meredith was somehow managing to cook a perfect dinner. All her friends had arrived, nothing had gone wrong, nothing had burned and it all smelled beautiful. She stood back and surveyed her kitchen with pride swelling in her chest. Picking up another bottle of wine she decided to go and be the perfect hostess and make sure none of her guests had empty glasses. She almost bumped into Derek as he came quickly into the kitchen with Alex. Before she had a chance to ask what was happening Derek explained.

"Gloria's here. And she's sitting beside Mark and Izzie."

"What the hell is she doing here? Derek did you invite her?" Meredith quizzed

"She was there when I asked Mark, I didn't think." He replied looking sheepish.

"I don't think it matters that she's here." Alex chipped in, "Izzie and Mark are not even talking and she looks like she wants to kill him. We're hiding in here until dinners ready."

"You two are not hiding in here. You asked her." Meredith scolded pointing her finger at Derek "You better make sure she behaves." She pushed them out of her kitchen and followed them into the room where Gloria was now telling everyone in the room how her silly boyfriend had forgotten to collect her earlier. Immediately Meredith's heart went out to Mark, he looked like he wanted to kill Gloria. While everyone else looked extremely nervous.

"Izzie, can you help me? Something is wrong with my potatoes." Meredith said from the edge of the room and returned into the kitchen waiting for Izzie. When she joined her Meredith immediately began apologising.

"Iz I am so sorry, I did not know she was coming." Meredith explained as she realized that her roast potatoes were actually starting to burn slightly.

"Don't be Meredith. It's not like I did not expect him to move on after I left. And she seems nice." Izzie said, ignoring what had happened last night.

"Ha, well she is really annoying. You know if you came back Mark would leave her in a heartbeat." Meredith said in a confident tone.

"Mer, if I was going to come back for Mark I would have done it years ago." Izzie said sadly. "Your chicken seems done."

Ten minutes later everyone was sitting down at Meredith's large dining table. Derek and Meredith were sitting at either end of the table while on either side sat the others. Izzie was sitting opposite Mark and Gloria. Gloria had taken a keen interest in Izzie happy that there was someone new to talk to not just Marks boring friends.

"So Izzie why did you come back to Seattle after so long?" she asked in her squeaky voice.

"Oh I was at a wedding of a friend of mine, so I thought I'd visit everyone while I was here." Izzie said smiling.

"Who's wedding?" Gloria pushed for details while Cristina rolled her eyes.

"Actually I think you might know him, Joe King, he's a doctor." Izzie said addressing Meredith and Derek in particular.

"Yeah, We do. Mark were you not at the wedding too?" Derek asked

"I was. I bumped into Izzie there." Mark announced to the table.

"And you two survived without killing each other?" Alex joked

"Why would you two kill each other?" Gloria asked hating that she was left out of the conversation.

"They used to date." Cristina explained hoping she would cause some drama tonight. Gloria clearly looked surprised.

"Really? For long?" her voice squeaked.

"A few years." Mark said with no emotion.

"So was Mark why you left Seattle?" Gloria asked Izzie who was wishing she could change the subject.

"No." Izzie said honestly

"Yes it was." Mark responded.

"I did not leave Seattle because of you." Izzie insisted "I had something going on in New York."

"Oh yeah? What?" Mark demanded while everyone looked on uncomfortably.

"It's none of your business." She replied but Mark noticed a flicker of pain on her soft features.

"Anyway, I also bumped into the Chief at the wedding." She announced changing the subject "And he asked me to come visit the hospital, check out Dennys Clinic again and stuff."

"He wants you to come back doesn't he?" Meredith screamed with delight.

"Well yeah, he has offered me a job in Seattle Grace."

At this announcement everyone at the table excitedly exclaimed that she should come back. The only two people at the table who said nothing were Mark and Gloria.

Mark had expected the Chief would offer Izzie a job but now it had been confirmed he felt lost. Half of him wanted her to come back but the other half did not want to have to work with her again, he was torn.

"Are you considering it?" Derek asked

"I'm not sure. Like it would be great to come back and work with everyone again." Izzie said as she looked at everyone at the table except for Mark. "I feel my work is done in New York and I'm looking for a change. The Chief has offered a great package and additional funding so I can continue my research. Plus I would be able to take over the Clinic and I really feel like I've neglected it since I left."

At this point Gloria was tired of the attention Izzie was receiving from the table and decided it was time to make her voice be heard.

"I think the free clinic was the biggest mistake the hospital made; I mean if they charged a fee they could make so much money." She said ignoring the looks of disgust she was receiving from everyone at the table "It's throwing money away. And anyway who is this Denny guys it's named after, like whose ever even heard of him?"

Satisfied that she had taken the limelight from Izzie, Gloria gave a little laugh while the table looked from her to Izzie.

While Gloria had been insulting Izzie's clinic Mark had watched his ex-girlfriend as her facial expression did not move. Izzie slowly stood up from her seat.

"I'm going to get some more wine." Izzie said quickly exiting the room and going into the kitchen.

"What's her problem?" Gloria asked in her perky voice unaware that everyone at the table wanted to kill her.

"Denny was her fiancé, after he died Izzie opened the clinic in his memory." Mark said and with that he rose from the table and followed Izzie into the kitchen ignoring Meredith who asked him to leave Izzie alone.

He found Izzie attempting to open a bottle of wine with her face frowning. Moving towards her he took the wine bottle out of her hands and popped the cork.

"Iz, I'm so sorry." He said softly as he noticed tears welling up in her brown eyes. She quickly blinked and wiped the edge of her eye.

"Whatever Mark." She said rolling her eyes.

"Iz, you need to know I did not want her here."

"That doesn't change anything Mark. You cheated on her. You cheapened me and what we had years ago by sleeping with me when you have a girlfriend. I can't believe you. Your such an ass." She hissed as she leaned against the island. The last thing she wanted was Mark to comfort her over what Gloria had said, she needed to attack him and make him hurt like she was hurting.

"I did not cheat, we had broken up." Mark said defending himself.

"Yeah but from what I hear you two are always breaking up and getting back together. You would have been expecting to get back with her. You have made me feel like one of your one night stands, you just used me."

"Iz, I did not use you. The old Izzie would not do this, hide from what happened last night. You're using Gloria as a front to avoid it. I was not with Gloria, by taking you to bed I did not cheat on her." He said trying to keep his voice down. "And don't act like you are so high and mighty, you wanted it too."

"Yeah well I made a mistake. I thought that maybe after all this time you might have matured but you're worse than before. Still the manwhore you've always been and I'm done. I'm so done." She said also trying to keep her voice in check.

At this the door creaked up and Gloria carefully walked in. Glancing nervously at Izzie she coughed and looked at Mark. She had just received a lecture from Izzie's friends and just wanted to leave.

"Mark I think its best if I go home, will you drive me?" she asked feebly.

Saying nothing he brushed past Gloria and left with her hot on his heels.

Izzie took a deep breath and returned to the dinner table ignoring her friend's concerned looks as she struck up a conversation with Lexie about her due date.

Izzie had now made up her mind. Her clinic needed her and she needed to work harder to make sure Denny's memory would not be forgotten. It would mean accepting a job that would have her working hand in hand with Mark but Izzie could be professional and mature no matter how much it hurts she had let down the Clinic by leaving but now she would make amends.


	8. Not Talking

_Decided to speed this story up a little so we've jumped forward by 2 months. Please Review._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Grey's or any of it's characters.  
_

Two months had passed since Izzie had decided to move back to Seattle. Despite the fact that working with Mark was at best strained and awkward she loved working in Seattle Grace. She had moved into a new apartment which was near Alex's place. She was devoting as much time as possible to Denny's Clinic and working until all hours trying to straighten things out. It became obvious to Izzie that the Clinic had been badly managed in her absence and she was implementing new procedures and systems to improve the Clinic.

She was touched by how much time all of her friends, including Mark, put into the Clinic before she came back. She soon realized how much she missed them when she needed to rely on their help while she adjusted to life back in Seattle. Both Derek and Alex had helped her move in to her new place. They assembled furniture and moved it back and forth while Izzie tried to decide where everything should go.

Izzie had now fallen into a comfortable routine. She spent a lot of time with all her friends and loved looking after Meredith's kids. At least once a week she would go out for dinner with Meredith and Cristina and they often met the boys after in Joe's. In social circles Izzie rarely bumped into Mark, it was pretty obvious that he was avoiding her, which suited Izzie fine because she too was avoiding him.

Following the disastrous dinner at Meredith's Izzie was surprised to find Gloria waiting outside her office one day. She had apologised for what she said about the clinic and gave Izzie a potted plant for her new apartment. Izzie was touched and accepted Gloria's apology but since then she had rarely seen Gloria in the hospital. However, it was clear that Gloria and Mark were still together which surprised everyone and lead to many debates about whether Mark actually loved Gloria. Bets had been taken that they would split up with Izzie's arrival but it did not happen much to Cristina's annoyance, she lost $100. Meredith had soon realized that her hopes of getting Mark and Izzie back together would never amount to anything.

* * *

Izzie had a problem, it had been on her mind for the past week but she pushed it to the back of her mind as she searched the halls for Mark. On seeing him she took a deep breath. They had not talked about anything other than work since Meredith's dinner. Izzie wanted to talk to him, she hated the tension between them but she could not take the first move and try to talk to him so they continued to ignore each other.

"Dr. Sloan, I have a patient being admitted tomorrow, I was hoping you would give a second opinion." She said as she pasted him the patients file.

"Sure." He replied scanning the file and not even looking at Izzie. She would be lying if she said that his behaviour did not bother her. He could expertly ignore her while she got the shivers when she smelt his aftershave.

"Is that all?" he asked unaware that Derek was watching the two of them.

"Yeah, um have you seen Dr. Karev?"

"No." Mark grunted wishing Izzie would go away. Ever since she had returned it was near impossible to think about anything other than Izzie. He had originally thought that he would just get used to her being there but that had not happened. Anytime he saw her he immediately became nervous and jumpy. With her back she reminded him of how lonely he was without her. Even when he was with Gloria he was lonely for Izzie. He had also started avoiding his friends, he used to go to Alex's place during the week for a beer but on the first week after Izzie returned he called over only to find her baking cookies in Alex's kitchen. Her obsession with baking had slipped his mind and the smell of the cookies had served as a harsh reminder of what he was missing out on.

Looking at her now he had the felling she was holding back, like she wanted to say something but did not know how. Izzie nodded had left to look for Alex. He wanted to talk to her, to ask if she was alright but he could not. The best he could manage right now was a professional front.

"Hey, you have time to grab a coffee?" Derek asked making his presence known.

"Sure. I have surgery in thirty minutes though."

"So what's it like working with Izzie in the plastics department?" Derek questioned, he had noticed that Mark was spending less and less time with his friends. With all the attention on Izzie's return Derek felt he had neglected his friendship with Mark.

"Fine, she's a very good doctor, patients are happy so I'm happy." Mark said with a shrug.

"Mark, you are not happy, and you know that's not what I was asking."

At this Mark softened, he was trying so hard to hide how much he actually hated working with Izzie.

"It's hard." He admitted "but we're both trying to be as professional as possible and I'm sure we'll get used to it soon."

"Have you talked to her?"

"About what? We have nothing to say to each other, it's probably best this way, at least we're not fighting."

"Mark you need to start talking to her. You don't only work with her; you have the same friends as her." Derek said as they reached the coffee cart and ordered two cappuccinos.

"I'll think about it. Look I better go." Mark said picking up his coffee "I'm going to some launch party tonight with Gloria but I'll give you a call tomorrow."

"Sure, talk to you then." Derek said as he watched Mark rush off. Derek had seen a whole new side of Mark when he got with Izzie and then again when Izzie left. Mark was actually vulnerable and Izzie had broken his heart. It was unsettling seeing Mark so affected by Izzie's return and Derek just wanted his old confident friend back.

* * *

As Izzie made her way to Alex's office she had her mind set on solving her current problem. Nervous were building in the pit of her stomach as she knocked on his office door and entered.

"Hey Iz, you just missed Lexie and Baby Alison. She was in for a check up." Alex said. "Can you believe she's six weeks old already?"

"Yeah I know times flying." Izzie agreed.

"So are you finished work now, up for hitting Joes?" Alex asked as he cleaned up his desk.

"Actually Alex before we leave I need a favour." Izzie asked her voice quivering slightly

"Yeah sure, what is it?"

"I need a pregnancy test."


	9. Chapter 9 Intrupted

_I've been meaning to update this for awhile hope you like it. Thanks for all the reviews, I'd love some more?_

As Izzie left Alex's office she now realized her tactic of avoiding Mark would no longer work. She needed to talk to him. She made her way through the halls of the hospital trying to formulate the words she'd use to tell him that she was pregnant with his child. This kind of thing could only happen to Izzie. No one else she knew would find themselves in this position, getting pregnant with her ex-boyfriends baby when he now had a new girlfriend.

Although her situation was not perfect Izzie could not help but be ecstatically happy. All her life she had wanted a baby but when Sarah had come along the timing had been all wrong. At 16 everything was against Izzie. She had no money, no father, a mother who wasted all her earnings and the trailer she lived in let in the rain. So Izzie had done the right thing and allowed some really great people take Izzie's place and rare her daughter. Still thinking about Sarah hurt, it always hurt but Sarah had thanked her for putting her up for adoption when Izzie saw her in New York and they both realized that Izzie had most defiantly made the right decision all those years ago.

This time round the timing, well it was not great but it was not a total disaster. Izzie had always thought that the next time she got pregnant she would be married or be in a relationship with the father. But she was alone the first time and if she was alone this time she would cope. Izzie hit the button of the elevator and waited anxiously, smiling at a woman who passed pushing a baby in a stroller. She felt so happy and so terrified at the same time. She could not wait until she would get to hold her own baby and as Alex just told her she had just seven months to wait. She smirked as she stepped into the elevator remembering Alex's face when she asked for the pregnancy test. At first he thought she was joking and grabbed his coat all set to leave and go to Joe's but eventually he realized she was serious and then when he got the results back he was even more shocked. That's when the questions began which Izzie quickly dodged telling him that she did not want to talk about the father. She swore him to secrecy on the matter and then left to go and find Mark.

Nerves again swirled in the pit of her stomach. She had no idea how he would react to her news. She could only guess that he would be happy. Like her he had once almost been a parent only to have Addison abort the baby. Izzie knew how this had affected him, after he had told her about it he brushed it aside and change the topic but that was when Izzie first saw Mark when he was vulnerable and she had then decided that he would make a great father. And seeing him with Meredith's children had proved that. Izzie hated to admit it but she felt jealous of his relationship with those kids, it was obvious that Jacks eyes lit up even at the mention of Mark's name. Izzie noticed that her palms were now sweating slightly as she made her way along the hall. She felt like she was in a trance, her mind was racing but her body was calmly taking her along the route to Mark's office. Before she knew it she was standing outside the door. Raising a shaky hand she knocked twice before opening the door.

Mark was standing behind his desk fiddling with his tie. Izzie quickly noticed he was wearing a suit and he always had blown her away when he wore a suit.

"Mark." She said cursing her voice as it shook slightly.

"Dr. Stevens, I did not get a chance to look over the chart you gave me earlier. The patients due in tomorrow right?" he asked as he continued to struggle with his tie.

"Oh, yeah um that's not what I'm here about." She said not sure what to say next. The room was filled with silence. "You don't need it."

"What?" he asked finally looking up at Izzie. Her forehead was creased. He knew that expression, she was worried about something. Part of him hoped that she would turn right around and not tell him whatever it was, and part of him just wanted her to open up to him.

"The tie, you don't need it. It's better without the tie." She said smiling slightly as he pulled the opened the knot on the tie and threw it on his desk and opened his collar.

"Can I help you with something Izzie?"

"Yeah, I don't really know how, or where to start." She began as she felt her eyes start to mist over. One million different emotions were flooding through her but this was the moment, she had to tell him. "At the wedding, Karen and Joe's wedding."

"Izzie I don't want to talk about it. Let's just forget it." He said, knowing how harsh it sounded but not wanting to get hurt once again by Izzie. He noticed Izzie frown slightly but she continued more determined.

"Mark, I can't forget about it, I'm pregnant." She noticed surprise flood his face, similar to Alex just a few hours previous. Her heart went out to him, it was obviously the last thing he was expecting to hear. It was a few moments before he spoke.

"Izzie." He began but just as he was about to continue the door burst open and Gloria barged in dressed to kill in a tight blue dress and 6 inch stilettos.

"Hello Izzie, How are you?" she chirped not noticing the atmosphere in the office. "We're just going out; work is throwing a party tonight in the new Castle Hotel. Have you been there yet, it's supposed to be amazing? We can't wait, right Mark?" As Mark nodded Izzie realized that her opportunity to talk to him had now disappeared.

"Yeah I hear it's nice. Well have a nice night." She said as she dashed out the door and quickly made her way to the bathroom. That could not have gone worse.


	10. Searching for Izzie

_I think this story has really been painting Mark in a really bad light so I'm hoping the next few chapters will clear things up a bit._

_Reviews appreciated :)  
_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Greys or any of its characters._

Mark Sloan's life had not turned out as he had expected. Nothing had ever really gone according to his plan all his life. He had become a Doctor to save lives and help people only to get pulled into the playboy world of plastics. Originally he was all set to go into cardio but there was just something about plastics that drew him against his better judgement like a moth to the flame. Of course Plastics is really worthwhile and a good profession not to mention a profitable profession but he knew it did not go under the category of saving lives in the same way cardio or neuro did. When he first showed an interest in plastics Mark would admit that he got a kick out of changing people's physical features. Giving girls new boobs and noses and making them feel better about themselves was rewarding, to a point but now that he is a few years older vanity just annoys him. The Chief doesn't know it but Seattle Grace saved Mark and gave him Izzie even if it was only for a brief period in his life. Seattle Grace made him feel like a doctor again, throwing challenging cases at him and allowing him to concentrate more on his ear, nose and throat speciality. Prior to working in Seattle Grace Mark was unaware of the rewards of pro bono cases, like the kid a few years ago who he built new ears for. That same kid still sent him Christmas cards thanking him. Mark smiled as he continued to stare back up at the entrance to Seattle Grace.

Just moments before he had placed Gloria in a taxi, on her own and sent her off to whatever it was she was dragging him too. In the early days of his so called relationship with Gloria he had told her that he suffered from migraines, which was a lie. It was an excuse that he soon began using on a frequent basis and one that had lasted the test of time. He had to admit being a doctor had its perks, he was an expert at describing his symptoms and knew all about the drugs he would take to control the onset of one of his migraines. Tonight he had used his excuse because he needed to talk to Izzie.

As he walked back into the hospital he felt a rush of guilt hit him. He had been treating Izzie so badly ever since the dinner party in Meredith's house. She had tried to initiate some level of conversation, silence never sat well with Izzie but he had brushed any feeble attempt back and only discussed work with her.

He had been protecting himself though. Mark had only been hurt three times in his life. By Derek (self-inflicted), by Addison but worst of all was by Izzie. With Izzie the situation was made worse because he had hurt her just as much as she had hurt him. When he had first seen Izzie at the wedding he had forgotten that hurt, but that was only temporary. It all came flooding back again when Izzie met Gloria. As much as he hated to admit it he needed Gloria. She protected him from having to feel anything really for another person. Everyone thought he used Gloria for sex but really she was his shield from other woman. He had met her so soon after Izzie had left so he never really had to get back into the dating seen. He never had to look for a partner because he had Gloria. She was there if he needed a date for a function or just to prove to Meredith that he did not need Izzie.

He made his way through the halls to Izzie's office searching for her on the way. Mark shivered as he remembered how he had stood staring at her when she had told him she was pregnant. He was already beginning to feel like a failure as a father. He wondered how long Izzie knew she was pregnant for, had she struggled to tell him seen as he had blanked her so often. If he had known the way things would have worked Mark would not have settled for the way things had been between him and Izzie these past few weeks. Asking one of the nurses to page Izzie after he had not found her in her office he continued to search the halls. Guilt and panic had now over taken him. He needed Izzie to know how he felt about her pregnancy. He needed her to know that he was delighted, unbelievable happy. She would be giving him what he always wanted and he couldn't wait to be a father. He had given up hope that he would ever father a child.

Unable to find her he pulled out his phone and called her. As the dial tone rang out for the sixth time he had all but given up on getting a response.

"Mark?" Izzie asked in a shaky voice which told him she had been crying. It amazed Mark how well he could read her even after years apart.

"Iz, I'm so sorry about Gloria and earlier, I should have sent her away."

"It's ok." Izzie's soft voice spoke into his ear.

"No it's not, look where are you? We have to talk?" he said urgently.

"I'm at home. Maybe we should just let the news sink in. We can talk tomorrow." She replied clearly vetoing his idea.

"Ok, tomorrow we'll talk." He verified.

"Yeah, sure. Night Mark." She said but quickly before she hung up he blurted out.

"Izzie this is a good thing. I promise."

"Yeah, I think so too. Night Mark." She said again with a clear smile in her voice.


	11. A Busy Day

_Dont know when I'll get to upload another chapter. please review._

Mark had spent the night in Seattle Grace, knowing he would be unable to sleep if he went home. So he worked on extra paperwork and did some research until finally he fell asleep in the couch in his office. When he woke the next morning already he could feel butterflies tumbling around in his stomach. He barely noticed the crick in his neck or the ache in his back from his uncomfortable sleeping position. He cleaned up his office and made his way to the locker room where he took a quick shower. Grabbing a quick breakfast and a strong coffee he set about seeing patients keeping an eye on the time as any minute now Izzie would be coming into work.

And five minutes later there she was. Deep in conversation with George who was telling her something and her response was just to roll her eyes in typical Izzie fashion. Izzie always took Marks breath away but today he was wondering if he would need an oxygen mask just looking at her. She caught his eye and smiled tightly at him as she made her way along the hall with George. Picking up his charts he went to walk towards Izzie when he came face to face with Callie.

"Oh my God Mark I need you and a coffee right now." She said as she grabbed him and pulled him towards the coffee cart. Mark attempted to protest but Callie was not listening.

"It's Arizona, it's just moving so fast. She asked me to move in with her." Callie said with her eyes wide to dramatise the situation. "I don't know what to say, like it's soon right, and like when I do things fast it goes wrong like with George and Erica but I dunno what to do, cos maybe fast is good. What do I do?"

"Stop it right now; stop looking at me with those eyes. Seriously you're coming to me looking for relationship advice?"

"Yes because you had it, you had the great relationship that was the stuff of movies and you blew it. And I want that with Arizona." She responded directly.

"Well Izzie and I moved in together soon after we became a couple." He offered "The thing about relationships is you just gotta do what you think is right and have no regrets." He said realizing he had many regrets.

Callie smiled at him and squeezed his hand. She knew he never got over Izzie. "Thanks." She replied, "You've not been much help but still."

"Do you think I blew it with Izzie?" he asked.

"Yes Mark, I think you did. You both did."

* * *

Izzie should have been an actress. She had even surprised herself with how calm she was acting today despite the fact that she was totally panicked and jumpy. In typical Seattle Grace fashion the day she wanted to do as little work as possible turned into chaos. First she had a celebrity patient who had flown in from New York especially to have Izzie do her latest breast enhancement and facelift. Following that there was a fire in a local school which lead to her being pulled in on numerous surgeries and being paged to all sections of the hospital. Izzie had worked with Mark throughout the day but had barely gotten a chance to say anything to him relating to their baby. They made some small talk in the OR keeping up appearances for the nurses and other doctors in the room.

At 8:00 that night Izzie and Mark were standing at the large sink scrubbing out.

"God that was like the worst day ever." Izzie commented. She hated working on children because in plastics she only ever worked on children when a fire, car crash or something else awful had happened to them. Usually when she would be the first asses them and they would be in excruciating pain and Izzie could not bear the screams she had often heard in the hospital over the years.

"Yeah it sure was busy." Mark agreed.

"I have another surgery scheduled now so I better go." Izzie said as she dried off her hands and made her way to the door.

"Iz, will you come over to mine when you get off work? We need to talk." He said as Izzie's pager went off.

"Crap, 911. Yeah I don't know when I'll be finished. It will probably be late, is that ok?" She asked as she made her way to the door.

"Yeah, see you later."

* * *

Two hours later Izzie was leaving Seattle Grace. She had just lost her patient who was a six year old girl. Her body ached and she really just wanted to go to bed but she had to face Mark. She made her way to the car hoping that she would not have such a busy day ever again. As she drove the familiar route to the apartment she had shared with Mark years ago she could not help but feel overcome with emotion. She had no idea how the next few hours with Mark would go. How they would work this out. As she parked her car she could feel her nerves rising even further.

She entered the front door to her old apartment block with the key she had never given back. They had lived in a mansion that had been converted into a number of large fancy apartments. Izzie had fallen in love with the place when Mark had showed it to her and he surprised her even further when he presented her with a key and told her that she would be moving in with him. It was never up for discussion she was to live with him end of story. She had offered a million times to pay rent or contribute to the mortgage but he did not have a mortgage. He had sold his pent house in New York which was worth a lot more than this apartment at the time.

She knocked nervously on the door suddenly feeling scared about entering his apartment, no longer their apartment. Behind the door were rooms that held so many memories for her. Taking a deep breath she plastered on a smile as the door opened.

"Oh my God, Izzie." Gloria's shrill voice rang out. "Mark is going to propose to me." She blurted out.

"What?" Izzie gasped as her mind raced. Where was Mark?

"Yeah I just popped by and I found the engagement ring in the drawer beside his bed." She cried in excitement.

"Wow, that's great, congratulations." Izzie said quickly as she felt tears gather on her eye lashes. "Well, actually I better go." She said as she backed away from Gloria.

"Did you come here for something? Are you sure you won't come in and have a glass of wine? I'm sure Mark will be back soon, I'm leaving now anyway, I don't want him to know I came across his little surprise." Gloria cooed making Izzie's stomach churn.

"Oh it was just something for work. It's not important. Bye." Izzie said over her shoulder as she ran down the stairs and out onto the street. She quickly got into her car as tears streamed down her face. Needing to get away from the familiar street she wiped her eyes staining her hands and cheeks with mascara as she drove to Alex's place praying he would be home.


	12. Not Engaged

_Ok I said I would not update soon but I felt bad for leaving this as a cliffhanger. Plus I got a huge load of work done so the pressure is off a little and I decided to relax by writing this. Just to mention Izzie and Alex are in no way involved in this story they are just friends and Izzie only turns to Alex now because he is the only one who knows she is pregnant so far. _

_Please Review :)  
_

Alex considered himself to be a rational man. He rarely made a decision that he had not thought through which was why he was currently driving towards Mark Sloan's apartment to find out what the hell was going on. He was just settling down to watch some crappy TV when his evening was interrupted by Izzie. She had thrown herself into his apartment ranting and raving about what a bastard Mark was. It was clear that Izzie had been crying but that had stopped by the time she had reached Alex's place and anger had taken over. It took Alex over half an hour to get Izzie to explain to him what exactly had happened. She solved the mystery behind who was the father of her baby and had told him all about her run in with Mark at the wedding a few weeks back and how relations between them had deteriorated between them after that brief but life changing encounter.

The rational part of Alex's brain was telling him that there had to be a mistake. There was no way that Mark would even consider marrying Gloria. Gloria was hot, there was no doubt about it but soon after she began dating Mark everyone found her unbearable. She had a way of saying the wrong things like suggesting to Meredith that she should try the Atkins diet when she was six months pregnant. Alex hated her and he knew all of his friends felt the same way but he also knew that Mark was embarrassed by her. Mark and Gloria had broken up on numerous occasions. The longest it had ever lasted was three weeks. It was a relationship that no one could understand.

The rational part of Alex's brain was also reminding him of how much Mark worshiped the ground Izzie walked on when they dated. They were the couple that everyone wanted to be like. They were not obvious or sappy and were always professional in the hospital but they were great together until the very end. When Izzie and Mark first broke up every one tried to keep their distance, everyone had tried to convince each other that they just needed to talk but there was so much anger. In fact tonight's rant from Izzie reminded Alex of the nights after their break up. When Izzie left it was as if someone switched the power off in Mark. He was half the man Alex had become friends with on Izzie's insistence. As the months wore on it became more and more apparent that Izzie was not coming back and Mark broke even more as each day pasted. Even when he started dating Gloria everyone could tell he was not happy. Then eventually and gradually Mark returned to a version of his old self.

Alex parked his car with his rational side screaming that there had been a mistake but his gut churning with anger. He wanted to kill Mark when he first saw Izzie's tear stained face standing on his door step. He rang the buzzer and waited for Marks voice to ring out over the intercom.

"Hello." Mark said happily as Alex gritted his teeth wondering if his happy tone was because of his recent engagement.

"Mark, its Alex. Buzz me in." Alex demanded as the buzzer rang he heard the door unlock and made his way up the stairs to Mark's apartment. Mark had the door open and Alex entered closing the door behind him he found Mark in the kitchen looking into the oven where he had a lasagne cooking. Mark turned to him about to talk when Alex quickly shouted.

"What the hell are you playing at?"

"What?" Mark asked frowning. He was clearly not expecting Alex to shout at him.

"Getting engaged to Gloria when you know Izzie is pregnant with your kid?" Alex barked. His rational side of his brain had lost control of his mouth but had control of his hands which was why he was not beating Mark up by now.

"Engaged? I'm not engaged." Mark said cautiously. The thoughts of being engaged to Gloria would have been funny if it was not for the fact that Alex looked so serious. "Izzie's coming over here after work to talk."

"Izzie is at her house sleeping so don't try and call her now." Alex interrupted as he felt himself calm down. "She thinks your engaged to Gloria."

"Where did she get that idea?" Mark asked as he felt fear flood his body. Having Izzie mad at him now was not a good sign.

"Gloria." Alex explained "Your lasagne is burning."

Grabbing a towel Mark flicked off the oven and quickly pulled the dish out and set it on the counter. Lasagne was Izzie's favourite and Mark had spent a good part of the evening making it. It wasn't completely ruined but it looked like Gloria had ruined his night anyway.

"You want a drink?" Mark asked Alex as he suddenly felt that he needed a scotch.

"Sure. A beer is fine." Alex replied as he sat down at Marks kitchen table which had neatly been prepared for Izzie's arrival. As Mark got the drinks Alex's voice took a softer tone as he asked

"Mark, what happened tonight?"

"I have no idea." Mark said in a defeated tone as he passed Alex a drink and sat opposite him at the table. "It's just such a mess. Izzie and I were supposed to talk today about the baby but it was so busy so she said she would come round after work. And after that I don't know."

"Well when she got here Gloria answered and told her she found an engagement ring." Alex said while Mark grew angrier suddenly everything was making sense.

"I went to the store earlier Gloria must have stopped by, she has a key for emergencies but I know she uses it." He sighed getting up and going into the bedroom returning a few minutes later with a shoe box and a tiny ring box.

Placing the ring box in front of Alex he returned to his seat. Alex noticing how Marks mood had suddenly become sad carefully opened the box to reveal a sparkling diamond ring.

"Wow. How much did this set you back?" He commented unsure of what to say.

"Yeah, nice isn't it? And after three years of being in that box it still sparkles." He said. "That's what Gloria found. I was planning on asking Izzie to marry me years ago. Things just fell apart I guess." He shrugged as Alex pushed the ring back to him and Mark picked it up looking at it closely. "When I got home earlier I pulled it out, I wasn't planning on asking her to marry me tonight, and we both know she would not have me but I have not looked at this thing in ages."

Pulling the shoe box into the middle of the table Mark pulled out some photos of him and Izzie, tickets for concerts they had gone to, ticket stubs for flights and other bits of rubbish that Izzie had collected because she said they had memories attached to them. Izzie was a sentimental girl but Mark loved that she had kept these items and when she left he had often looked through them. Included in the box in an envelope was her invitation and his invitation to Meredith and Derek's wedding. The wedding they had first hooked up at.

"This is all Izzie's crap she collected. I guess the pregnancy is making me drag up old memories." Mark said sadly as Alex looked thought old photos of his friends looking happy together. After a few moments Mark asked.

"How mad is she?"

"Furious." Alex laughed realizing that Gloria's mistake could cause Mark a world of problems. "She'll calm down eventually, she'll have too your having a baby together."

"Hopefully, that's if she doesn't kill me." Mark added as Alex stood making his way to the door. Before leaving Alex decided to give Mark one final piece of advice.

"She won't make it easy for you but maybe you should think about dumping Gloria because from what I've seen tonight I think you want Izzie back."


	13. The Fence Goes Up

**Hey so the first part in italics is a flashback just so there's no confusion. As always I love reviews so you know what to do.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything!  
**

_Izzie lay on the bed leafing through a magazine when she heard the front door of her apartment slam shut. She smiled as she heard Mark shuffle around their kitchen._

"_Mark? How did it go?" she called from the bedroom. Mark had gone over to the Sheppards to babysit two month old baby Jack. Since the day he was born Izzie had been pestering Derek and Meredith to let her babysit and finally when they decided to go out for the first time since his birth Izzie was working late and was unable to change her shifts. This left Mark literally holding the baby. Izzie had called him three times that night from work to make sure he was ok and finally stopped calling when he wondered out loud if she was more worried about the baby than Derek and Meredith were._

_Mark came into the bedroom and kissed Izzie on the forehead. "It went fine." He replied as he wandered into the en suite and began to brush his teeth._

"_Did he go asleep easily for you? Did he take much of his bottle?" Izzie quizzed, fine was not a good enough answer she needed details._

"_Yeah, he slept." Mark said as he appeared at the door with his toothbrush in his mouth. He could see Izzie was still disappointed that she missed out on the opportunity to babysit. Her face fell when she realized he wasn't going to give her anymore details. Mark returned to the sink and finished brushing his teeth. Flicking off the light of the small bathroom he began to tell Izzie about his time babysitting as he took off his clothes._

"_When I got there he was asleep, which was kind of disappointing. So Meredith showed me all the stuff where the bottles were, the pacifier, bibs all that stuff. So Derek and Mer finally left and then I watched tv for about an hour when I heard Jack crying over that baby monitor thing so I went down and got him out of the crib and gave him some of the bottle." Noticing Izzie was about to ask him something he rushed on. "And yes I made sure it was all sterilized and at the temperature that you showed me last week. Then I winded him and he fell back asleep." Mark finished as he crawled into bed. Izzie put her magazine on the table beside the bed and shifted closer to Mark who pulled her even closer and gently kissed her shoulder._

"_How long were Meredith and Derek out for?" Izzie asked._

"_Less than two hours. I think they were anxious to get home to Jack. They went to Gino's, you know that place we went to two weeks ago."_

"_Oh right, did they like it?" Izzie asked as she turned her back to Mark and relaxed down into the pillow. _

"_Yeah, I think so." Mark replied and turned out the bedside lamp. After a few moments silence he wanted to ask Izzie something that had been on his mind for the past few weeks._

"_Izzie." He said nervously._

"_Yeah" _

"_When can we have a baby?" Mark asked as he traced his index finger slowly from her shoulder to her wrist. He knew the question had surprised her and she rolled over in his arms to look at him._

"_What?" she gasped._

"_Well I guess I mean do you want babies? We've never talked about it." he said looking into her large brown eyes which glinted from the moonlight._

"_Yeah I want babies." She replied still surprised. She knew Mark wanted children but she had always expected that she would be the one to bring the topic up. She always thought it was part of their plan. To move in together, which they had done, to get engaged, married and then babies. "And I know you want them too."_

"_You think one day we'll have children? Like you want to have babies with me right?" Mark asked cautiously causing Izzie heart to melt. _

"_Mark I only want your babies and I don't think one day we'll have them I know we will, someday." She said kissing him. Ever since Jack had been born she watch Mark grow closer and closer to the baby which had surprised her in the best way possible.

* * *

_

As Izzie stared at the computer screen in front of her she quickly re read what she had just spent her morning typing up. She shook her head trying to get that memory out of her head a fast as possible. That was how things were but that was also years ago. Things had changed, Mark had changed and now Mark was a bastard. Anger flooded her again as she remembered coming across Gloria yesterday.

She had fallen quickly asleep after Alex dropped her home. She was really tired, both physically and emotionally. But this morning she had woken up at six knowing what she would have to do. Saving and printing her work she quickly ran down to the post room to have the 22 page document bound.

Returning to her office she quickly busied herself with paper work. She had asked a nurse to inform Mark that she wanted to see him in her office and as she waited her nerves built up. She felt emotional but knew she could not show this side to Mark. She had to appear cold and stern. She had no choice. Mark had made his decision. Even if what Alex had said last night about their being no chance that Mark and Gloria would be engaged was true the fact of the matter still remained. He was still with Gloria. He had made his decision.

Twenty minutes later Izzie heard a soft knock on her door and looked up to find Mark standing in her door way. He looked tired and drawn but her heart still skipped a beat when she saw him.

"Iz, I know you saw Gloria last night and it's not true." Mark blurted out as he entered the room but Izzie quickly interrupted him holding her hand up to silence him.

"Mark it's fine. Gloria is an important part of your life." She said even though the words made her feel sick. "Take a seat."

"Izzie no your wrong, Gloria and I it's over I don't want her." He started still standing determined to make her understand.

"Mark listen I asked you to come here today so we can discuss the baby. Please just take a seat." She said firmly as she passed him the bound booklet.

"What is this?" Mark asked.

"It's your baby manual." Izzie replied simply in a business like tone. "It's got all you need to know, all my appointment dates are down there, books Alex recommended, websites that sort of stuff. I get that you'll want to be involved so if there is a change in any of the appointment dates I'll email you."

"It's a baby manual?" Mark questioned as he flipped through the booklet stunned.

"Yes, a baby manual." Izzie repeated "I was hoping near the birth we could have a meeting and arrange some kind of visiting schedule for you and the baby. I'm hoping we'll be able to come to some kind of arrangement that will suit both of us."

"Wait a second Izzie, you mean a kind of custody agreement?" Mark was stunned. Izzie was acting as if she was doing a business deal with him not that they were having a child together.

"Well yes but I don't want to be moving the baby around a lot when he's young. I want to set up a routine. Babies need a routine Mark. Oh and there's only one other thing I can think of for now. I want to be on all the later shifts from now on. I've arranged the schedule like that I hope you don't mind it's just when I was pregnant with Sarah I had really bad morning sickness so I think it would be best if I take the evening shift from now on?"

"Sure, of course." Mark said still stunned.

"Ok well that's all so you can leave now." Izzie said as she turned her eyes from Marks shocked and dismayed expression back to her computer.

"Wait Izzie don't we need to talk about this?" Mark asked not ready to leave.

"It's all in the booklet." Izzie shrugged as calmly as she could. She knew it was completely unrealistic that she could just put up this fence and Mark would back down.

"Izzie this is crap, I want to be more involve than just reading a booklet." He was starting to get frustrated.

"Well you can come with me to my appointments with Alex." Izzie suggested.

"That's not being involved." He said trying to stay calm but getting more and more irritated by the way Izzie was shrugging him off.

"Well what else can you do?"

"Izzie I want to look after you and the baby. Paint the nursery, set up the crib and hold your hair back when you have morning sickness." Mark stressed.

"Mark I can do all of that by myself." Izzie insisted as Mark's pager went off. She watched as he roughly pulled the pager off his waist band and angrily grunted.

"911." Getting up and moving to the door he said. "Iz this conversation is not over."

When he was gone Izzie buried her face in her hands and took deep breaths. She had hated every minute of that. Deep down she knew she wanted him to look after her, to be really involved but she was so terrified of getting hurt again. Keeping him at a distance was the best thing for her, for him and for their baby.


	14. Goodbye My Lover

_I have not forgotten about this story, hope some people will still read it. Please review._

Marks day was long and horrible. Izzie had avoided him, every attempt he had made to get in contact with her had not worked. In the halls she walked quickly and told him she was in a rush, at lunch she sat with Alex and left as soon as he approached them. He had even paged her which ended up with him on the receiving end of one of Baileys tempers when she found out he was paging for a non medical related reason.

After that he had been dragged into surgery for hours. He was glad of the distraction but now he was tired and defeated. He needed to find a way to communicate with Izzie, to make her listen to him but he didn't know how. Izzie was determined and stubborn, funny how one of the reasons he fell in love with her was not coming back to bite him on the ass.

As he drove home his minded raced with ways to fix things but his brain felt like mush. He needed a good night's sleep. As he parked his car he wondered how he managed to drive home safely without concentrating. He couldn't even remember if the traffic lights on the George's St Junction were green when he drove through.

Tomorrow he would get up early, go for a run and clear his head he decided as he finally made his way into his building. The lift was out of order. Typical, he should never have listened to Izzie when she told him to buy the apartment on the top floor. He wondered if he would be able to make his way up all the stairs without passing out. Would his neighbours really mind if he took a nap on the stairs. His feet felt like lead, he noticed as he pushed himself up flight after flight of stairs.

Opening the door he realised there was someone in his apartment. Gloria. She was rushing from room to room. Crap he did not want to deal with her now.

"What are you doing here?" he asked unable to be friendly tonight.

"Packing." She replied as she went into the bedroom with him hot on her heals.

"What?"

"That ring I found, it was for Izzie." She said as she threw some clothes she had left at his in a bag.

"She's pregnant. It's my kid, we had broken up when I went to that wedding and Izzie was there and it just happened." He said nervously, they had broken up a million times before, they had said some really horrible things about each other in the past but now this would be the final break. It felt different and he really did not want to hurt her.

"Wow." She said softly, and then she surprised him by hugging him tightly. "Congratulations, I really mean it."

He stared at her and she began to laugh.

"You look so surprised."

"Well I am, I was expecting you to scream at me." He admitted.

"Mark I always knew there was another girl. When we got together I knew you were rebounding from someone. What you don't know is I was rebounding from a guy too. Josh was his name. I always thought he'd come back to me, like you believed Izzie would come back to you. I just didn't think she would come back before Josh."

"You never mentioned him before." Mark added as he walked closer to the bed and sat down.

"Yeah I thought it would be easier not to tell the man I'm pretending to love about the man I really do love." She said with a shrug as she moved to the en suite and gathered some products.

"Oh, why don't you go find him?"

"I might now. I treated you really badly when we were together, I know I did. I am sorry, you're a great guy Mark and you'll make a great father." Gloria said softly as she zipped up the bag and looked around the room to make sure she had not forgotten anything.

"I don't know if I'll get much of a chance to be a great father. Izzie won't let me in. She typed up a manual." He said pulling it out of his bag showing it to Gloria. "She won't even talk to me."

"I'm sure I'm to blame for that." Gloria admitted as she scanned the manual. "Learn this off by heart, know everything you can and ask questions. If she's pushing you away don't let her, be persistent, I know you're good at that."

Passing the booklet back to Mark she pulled out her key and pressed it in his hand. Kissing him on the forehead she picked up her bag.

"Bye Mark." She said and then she was gone, suddenly he was no longer tired. Grabbing the manual, highlighters and pens he went into kitchen and began making a pot of coffee. It would be a long night but by the end of it he would know the manual from start to finish. If that's how Izzie wanted it, that's how it would be. For now.


	15. Determination

Determination was a trait that Mark had buckets off. Izzie had seen that in him the first day he had arrived in Seattle Grace. Along with noticing his good looks and confident swagger she saw how determined he was to get Addison back. This determination let him to leave his life in New York behind and join the team at Seattle Grace. He was going to get Addison back as well as his best friend. Izzie thought he was setting himself up for a fall. Addison and Derek both seemed uninterested but he still persevered.

Then came the race for Chief. Secretly Izzie was rooting for Mark, she didn't know why but she just had a soft spot for him. It probably helped that he had guided her through drilling holes in a man's head and getting her back into the OR. Thanks to him practicing medicine became a reality for her again and she really felt alive. She owed him a lot back then so he received her support for the race for Chief and when Addison left.

Somehow Izzie and Mark began to get on. Every time she was on his service she would get him a coffee, no questions asked and he would make sure she got to do something useful in surgery. Soon she found herself loving her time on plastics. He still dropped annoying comments about her figure and tried every chat up line in the book but she let it slide. Within a year she noticed that Mark was on top of his game and was now friends with Derek again. His determination had won out.

She came to the realisation that his determination was extremely sexy when she saw him go head to head with the Chief. It was over a patient called Georgie Parks, Izzie still remembered her vividly. She wanted every age defying surgery in the book and her rich husband was willing to pay for the whole thing. The Chief was delighted, Georgie was often featured in magazines at Gala events and promised to show off her new body and send many friends to Marks office. The only problem was that Mark sensed there was an underlying problem. This woman was addicted to looking younger and it was unnatural. He refused to do the surgery until a psyc consult was ordered. The Chief was furious but Mark would not operate until he was satisfied that Georgie was aware of what she would have put herself through. The Chief had threatened to fire Mark when it was found out from past medical records that Georgie had suffered from depression and anorexia. Basically the woman had many image issues, similar to Ava, and Mark did not feel right about messing with that.

His determination also shone through when they had first began to date. Everyone and an opinion on how long it would take before Mark screwed up and cheated, even Izzie did at the time. There were many bets floating around the hospital and it pissed Mark off. Izzie smiled to herself as she remembered him coming over to Meredith's one night and slamming the door behind him.

"_What's up?" Izzie asked as Mark stormed into the kitchen and began raiding the fridge for food._

"_Did you know people are betting on how long it will take me to screw this up?" he barked, not giving Izzie the chance to reply that she had. "Even Derek, even my best friend bet $50 that I would cheat on you by the end of the month."_

_Izzie just nodded slowly and continued to stir the ingredients for her cookies. She prayed she would not look guilty and prayed that he did not find out that she had bet $30 that their relationship would be over by Christmas. She had placed that bet two months ago when they had began dating, she had never thought they would even last that long but she was glad that she was wrong._

"_Mark everyone in the hospital bets on that kinda stuff it's nothing new." Izzie said soothingly. "I bet that Derek and Meredith would break up again and look at them now, married, happy and I'm $100 poorer because of it."_

_Mark frowned and studied her. "Yeah I know I just hate it. I know when I've got a good thing and I'm not going to mess it up. I've only ever cheated on Addison and that was because she wanted to be with Derek not me, I was letting her go."_

_Izzie smiled, "You know if you ever decide to let me go just tell me, don't cheat. Plus side to that is that Derek will lose his bet."_

_Mark's frown deepened and he closed the gap between them and kissed her softly. Their lips brushed gently against each other before Mark broke apart to say._

"_I'm never going to let you go and I'm determined that Derek will lose his bet."_

Izzie shivered as she remembered that conversation in Meredith's kitchen years ago. It was the first time she really saw how serious Mark was about her and it was the first time that she let her guard down with him. Before that day she was convinced he would leave her sooner rather than later. Really it was ironic that she was the one to leave in the end.

Turning her attention back to the mountain of paperwork on her desk she continued to work until she was disrupted by Mark storming into her office.

"I read your manual." He announced.

"Good." Izzie replied.

"It's bullshit Iz. If you think that's how things are going to be between us you are wrong. I'm going over to yours tonight at eight, I'm bringing Chinese and we are sitting down and discussing this face to face like adults." He said as Izzie notice the shine in his eyes, it was that glow of determination and it was finally back. She could not keep the smile off her lips as she answered.

"Ok."

"Ok. Um good." She heard the surprised tone in his voice but watched as he regained his confidence. "I'll see you later." He said as he backed out of the room.

Crap what had she done. She wasn't ready to talk to him about this yet but his determination was back and as sexy as ever. The great thing about being pregnant was she could and would blame her attraction to him purely on her hormones and his determination.


	16. Something's going on

_Its been ages so I hope some people will read this and will review.  
_

"Something's going on." Meredith said as she took a large bite of her apple. She was in the canteen with Alex and Cristina but had been watching Mark and Izzie for the past five minutes.

"What do you mean?" Cristina asked following Meredith's eyes to the two doctors standing at the other side of the room.

"Izzie and Mark. Something is going on." Meredith said nodding in their direction.

"You think they are back together?" Cristina asked squinting harder at the couple to see if she could read any signs of body language but there was nothing. Mark and Izzie were just facing each other and talking. And they looked serious, very serious.

"No I don't think so. They'd seem happier if they were back together right?" Meredith replied. "Do you know anything Alex?"

"Nope." Alex said quickly deciding the less he said the better, Meredith always had ways of getting him to tell her the truth but above all he was a doctor and she was his patient and since he had found out she was pregnant a few weeks ago he had been keeping a close eye on her and Mark.

"I can't quite put my finger on it but there is something going on. They both seem really miserable. You think he's really finished with Gloria?" Meredith asked.

"God I hope so. I don't miss her annoying face one bit." Cristina replied as Alex nodded.

"I thought they'd get back together. I mean Izzie and Mark." Meredith added hopefully.

"I don't think they could. After what happened how could either of them just forgive and forget?" Cristina said while Alex nodded again. "I'm surprised they are even working together."

"You think they are talking about work?" Meredith asked once again looking at the couple on the other side of the room. Izzie had just said something which caused Mark to walk off in the other direction.

"I need to talk to Sloan." Alex said as he jumped up and left the girls to finish their lunch.

"I hate this; I miss it when we were all happy. When we could all hang out together, ya know?"

"Ha happy is boring. I bet this is all gonna turn into a serious amount of sexual tension and then the two of them will act on it and Izzie will go running back to New York leaving Mark all broken and dark again." Cristina said with a glint in her eye causing Meredith to laugh.

"Your evil."

"Yep but I'm your person so you're stuck with me." Cristina added as she threw her last chip into her mouth and started gathering up her things. "We better get back to work."

"Yeah, think I'm just going to find Izzie and see what's going on."

* * *

Mark loved his office. It was clean and neat but most of all it was a safe haven from Izzie. They had sorted things out over the past few weeks and time was actually flying by but Izzie was still not letting him in. At least that dam manual was long gone.

He hated the situation. He really hated it. This was defiantly not how he wanted to bring a child into the world. He hoped that in the next few months his relationship with Izzie would get onto a better track but it was unlikely.

"Hey." Alex said as he slipped into the office.

"Hi." Mark said nodding at Alex.

"How are things?" Alex asked as he took a seat across from Mark.

"You mean how are things between me and Izzie and this mess that will result in a baby?" he asked unable to keep his frustration from bubbling to the surface.

"Yeah, that's what I mean." Alex clarified nervous he was crossing a line with the plastic surgeon. "I figured you might want to talk about it and seen as Izzie is not planning on telling everyone about the pregnancy any time soon I figured you needed someone to talk to?"

For a few moments Mark said nothing.

"Or not?" Alex said shrugging. "If you wanna talk just come find me." He said as he pushed himself out of the chair and began walking to the door.

"She won't talk to me." Mark finally admitted which stopped Alex in his tracks. "Like she talks but it's always just making plans and sensible things like that. I just wish we could have a conversation that's not so clinical. She still doesn't trust me."

"Both of you went through a lot. Mark the break up had a huge effect on both of you. She's probably still afraid."

"Yeah I get that but we're having a baby together, we can't do that if she's still pissed off about something that happened years ago." Mark said angrily. "I just don't know how to fix it without dragging up all that stuff again."

Silence encased the room once again and left Alex wishing he had not come to see if Mark needed someone to talk too. God knows he did not want to drag up the past again.

* * *

Meredith followed Izzie into the bathroom. She needed to corner the doctor if she was going to get answers about why the two of them were acting so strange. Deciding attack was the best way to get what she wanted Meredith just let it all out.

"Are you sleeping with Mark?"

"What? Are you following me?" Izzie asked, clearly she thought she was alone.

"Yes. Why are you two acting so strange?" Meredith demanded.

"I'm working with my ex boyfriend, the guy I thought was the love of my life, the guy who broke my heart. I think I am entitled to act a bit strange around him." Izzie countered angrily.

"You two were fine for the first few weeks. It's just been since he broke up with Gloria that things have gone weird." Meredith pointed out. "Look I'm just worried about you two. You were not the only one who got hurt."

"There is no us two Meredith and I don't want to hear about how much of a victim Mark is."

"Fine but Izzie you played a big part in the break up, Mark has never forgiven himself for what happened but all the blame does not fall on his shoulders." Meredith said softly.

"I know." Izzie whispered suddenly feeling guilty. "I haven't been very nice to him lately. It's just hard to..." Izzie broke off as her chin began to wobble and tears stung her eyes. Meredith rushed forward and hugged her friend, something she would have been reluctant to do years ago but after years of motherhood she had overcome that.

"Izzie I know something's going on. Just tell me. Did you two have a fight?" Meredith asked softly.

"No." Izzie said straightening up and wiping tears off her cheeks. "It's ok; I just need to sort a few things out." Izzie smiled at Meredith. She knew what she had to do. She had to apologise to Mark. She had to explain why she stayed in New York, it would be one of the hardest things she'd ever have to do but now it was unavoidable.

_So the next chapter it will all come out about their break up. Hopefully it wont take me forever to write._


	17. The Beginning of the End

_Two years ago._

_Izzie cautiously stirred the pasta sauce she was making from scratch. Her new year's resolution this year had been too cook more and to use fresh vegetables as much as possible. Today she had the day off and with Mark at a conference in New York and her other friends at work, Izzie had plenty of time to prepare a nice fresh meal which should be ready to serve just as Mark arrived home. She couldn't wait to see him, he had only been gone three days but she was really starting to feel starved of attention._

_She heard a click as the front door opened and Marks heavy footsteps along the hall along with him calling, "Honey, I'm home." Izzie rolled her eyes and turned to see him enter the open plan kitchen._

"_You're earlier than I expected." Izzie said smiling like a cheshire cat. She'd never admit it to him or anyone else for that matter but Izzie hated when Mark left, she hated their apartment without him in it._

"_Yeah there was very little traffic." Mark said as he went to throw his luggage in their bedroom. He had not expected Izzie to be home today. Quickly opening the pocket of the bag he pulled out the engagement ring he had bought while he was away and found a suitable hiding place. "The taxi only took half an hour to get here." Mark said as he returned to the kitchen._

"_That was fast." Izzie said as her eyes scanned the recipe in front of her as she tried to ignore the man advancing behind her._

"_Yeah, I told him I'd pay him extra because I needed to see my beautiful girlfriend as soon as possible." Mark said as he wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her shoulder. _

"_Well this beautiful girlfriend is busy cooking you a beautiful dinner so you better leave me alone so I can concentrate." Izzie said as Mark kissed his way up to her ear lobe. Over the years Izzie had learned to discipline herself and not give into Mark all the time or she'd never get anything done. This time however she knew it would be even harder. Four days without seeing him meant she wanted him more than ever._

"_I don't want dinner, I want you." Mark whispered in her ear causing multiple shivers to run down her spine. Izzie turned around in his arms, thoughts of her perfect dinner quickly slipping away._

"_I missed you." Izzie said putting her arms around his neck._

"_Missed you too." He replied before pulling her even closer and finally kissing her. It started out as a soft kiss but soon escalated. Izzie felt her back being pushed further into the counter as she moved her hands to undo his shirt buttons. A hiss from the stove as her tomato sauce boiled over made them both stop. Izzie quickly flicked off the stove and removed her now ruined sauce before turning back to Mark._

"_Bedroom?" she asked with a glint in her eye._

_The following morning Izzie's head was pounding. She searched in her hand bag for some pain killers before remembering that she had left them in her locker. Her search in their en suite had also proved fruitless._

"_Mark," she called out to the kitchen, "do you know where the painkillers are?"_

"_I think I have some in my bag that I took to New York. You ok?" he shouted back._

"_Just have a headache. Don't you have a surgery at ten?"_

"_Yeah, shit I better run. See you later." He replied and soon after Izzie heard the front door bang closed. Izzie pulled his bag closer and opened the side pocket. Rummaging through various pieces of crap she came across some painkillers but another package also caught her eye. Pushing her hand down further she found a box of condoms. An open box of condoms. Izzie was on the pill so they no longer used condoms after they had both gotten an STI test. Gasping she shoved them back into his bag. Her headache now forgotten about a new feeling of sickness was attacking her stomach. She wanted to throw up but she couldn't._

_Fear now gripped her. He was cheating on her or he'd had a one night stand or something. She wasn't sure which was worse. Half of her mind was thinking that he would never cheat but the other reminded her of the type of man he was before they began their relationship. Suddenly she needed to know more. Before she knew what she was doing she had opened his bag and was not searching through it. She didn't know what she was looking for, all she found was clothes, dirty socks and shirts. She looked across the room and saw his laptop bag. Opening the side pocket in that she found crap once again, rolling her eyes she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. She picked up his passport and a ticket stub fell out. Just as she was about to bin it she noticed something. The ticket was from his flight yesterday but it was not a return flight from New York. It was a flight from LA._

_Oh god, he's sleeping with Addison._

**Let me know what you think....**


	18. Chapter 18

So here's the next chapter, let me know if you want more.

_For about half an hour Izzie wandered aimlessly around their apartment. Not able to deal with what she had potentially just discovered she grabbed her keys and her handbag and drove over to Meredith's house. Knocking anxiously she tried to keep the tears from flowing as she waited for her friend to let her in._

"_Iz, what the hell happened you?" Meredith asked as she found Izzie with tear stained cheeks and messy hair._

"_I think Marks sleeping with Addison." Izzie whaled as Meredith moved back and Izzie stumbled into the hallway._

"_What? Izzie there is no way Mark would cheat on you? He's devoted to you. Anyway Addison has remarried." Meredith explained before hugging her friend tightly and leading her into the kitchen. _

"_Her being married didn't stop them before." Izzie said bitterly as she positioned herself at the island in the middle of the kitchen._

"_Coffee?" Meredith asked._

"_You got any vodka?" Izzie said giving Meredith a sad smile. "Coffees perfect."_

"_So why on earth do you think Mark is cheating?" Meredith asked as she began to fiddle with the coffee maker. Izzie had just told Meredith the whole story when Meredith placed a large mug of coffee in front of her._

"_I just feel so stupid. Last night when he came home everything seemed so perfect, and we had the most amazing sex, I can't believe he'd do this." Izzie said as a tear trickled down her cheek._

"_Awh Iz, don't cry. You need to talk to him about this." Meredith said reassuringly._

"_I know, I just don't think I can listen to it. I don't want to know the truth. I know he won't lie to me, if he's caught he'll just own up to it. I can't trust him again."_

_After Izzie left Meredith's she went to work. After an hour of working like a zombie Bailey sent her home sensing that Izzie was not feeling well. Izzie went for a walk to try and clear her head before returning to her home and waiting for Mark. Mark returned home from work at 6:35. By this time Izzie had gotten over her initial shock and was furious._

"_Hey babe, I heard you left work early. Still have that headache?" Mark asked. The concerned tone made Izzie want to throw up. She got up off the couch and wandered into the kitchen._

"_You do look pale." Mark said as he reached out to give her a hug. Izzie reacted immediately and pushed him away roughly._

"_Don't touch me." She hissed._

"_Iz, what the hell?"_

"_Are you sleeping with Addison?" Izzie asked straight out surprised at how straight forward she had been._

"_What? No of course not." Mark said chuckling; he soon stopped when he saw Izzie glaring at him. "Where did you get that idea?"_

"_There's an open box of condoms in your luggage." Izzie responded._

"_Iz, I borrowed the bag off Alex remember?" Mark replied. "I can't believe you'd jump to that conclusion after all this time Iz."_

"_Then what were you doing in LA. You told me you were in New York. Why did you lie to me?" Izzie asked in a raised tone. Mark paused and rubbed the back of his neck._

"_Look Iz, I didn't want to tell you about this." Mark began._

"_Oh god, you are sleeping with Addison." Izzie gasped as tears welled in her eyes._

"_No, Izzie. There's nothing going on with Addison, or anyone for that matter. I'm not having an affair. That patient I had a few months ago, Kelly Dean. Remember she was in the fire and her husband and two children died."_

_Izzie nodded as she wiped her eyes. When Kelly had come to Seattle Grace she had third degree burns on eighty percent of her body. It was the only case Izzie had ever seen Mark getting overly involved in which had worried her. Izzie had always gotten too involved in the past but she now understood that there was a line there for a reason. Mark on the other hand never saw this line as blurry. He always stuck to the rules and pulled Izzie back when she tried to bend them._

"_Well she's not been coping very well" he began only to be cut off by Izzie._

"_How do you know?" _

"_We meet up every now and then." Mark explained._

"_What? She's your patient Mark." Izzie exclaimed._

"_Yeah I know, but Izzie she's got no one and she needs help so I brought her out there to do this kind of four day course that they run. She got time with a psychiatrist, nutritionist, and that Pete guy did all this alternative therapy stuff. It did her the world of good." Mark said edging closer to Izzie._

"_I can't believe you didn't tell me." Izzie shouted._

"_I knew you would disapprove." Mark explained._

"_Of course I wouldn't approve, I can't believe you did that."_

"_Izzie she has no one and she's still badly scarred, her confidence is at rock bottom." Mark replied._

"_You're her doctor; it's not your job to get her life back on track. You are not meant to interfere."_

"_Oh for fuck sake Iz, I really don't think you're in a position to be talking to me about interfering." Mark shouted._

"_What's that supposed to mean?" Izzie countered._

"_You know I'm talking about Denny. You crossed the line there. You interfered so much that maybe the poor man would still be around today if you just left it alone." Mark replied, immediately regretting it when he was the look of shock on Izzie's face. "Shit, Iz I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."_

_Izzie quickly turned away and walked into the bedroom only to emerge a second later with the still packed bag that she had found the condoms in._

"_Good thing you didn't unpack, you can leave quicker." Izzie shouted as she threw the bag at him and returned to the bedroom locking the door behind her. Tears cascaded from her eyes as she stood in the middle of their bedroom unsure what to do, and unsure what she had just done. She had expected affair or denial. The truth that he had been helping a patient beyond the call of duty was the last thing that had crossed her mind. She heard him on the other side of the wall begging her to come out, begging her to talk to him followed by apology after apology. Her mouth was dry meaning she could not talk; her feet were glued to the spot so she could not move. Finally not able to listen to his voice anymore she went into the en suite and took a long shower. She felt like she was in slow motion, when she finally returned into the bedroom it was quite. She slowly dried her hair and climbed into bed, alone. He had stopped talking but she wasn't sure if he had left. She closed her eyes knowing she wouldn't be able to sleep. _

_What Mark had said about Denny had hurt beyond belief. Izzie had struggled with the circumstances which surrounded Denny's death for years. She couldn't have prevented the fatal stroke but Mark was right maybe if she had not have interfered he would have lived. It hurt more that Mark held that same opinion all along. Izzie lay awake for hours playing the events of the last few hours over and over in her mind and always coming to the same conclusion, their fight will change their lives forever._


End file.
